With the recent “leakage” of Red Sox slugger David Ortiz and former slugger Manny Ramirez having tested positive for steroids in 2003, the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) has finally asked the federal court system to investigate who is responsible for the leaks.

If you are not familiar with the situation, here is a brief recap. In 2003 MLB was starting to get a lot of outside pressure to do something about the rampant steroid use in the game. In an agreement with the players association, all players on active rosters would submit to steroid tests to see exactly how many big league players were using.

The promise MLB made to the player’s association was that the names of those tested would never be released and quite possible would be destroyed. Either 103 or 104 players tested positive and their names were placed on a list. Assuming that all 25 players on each 30 MLB team’s rosters were tested, that means 750 total players were tested.

The MLBPA held onto the list of names and the federal government seized the list of names as a part of its BALCO investigation. The MLBPA sued, and three separate district court justices ruled the seizure of the names was illegal under the Fourth Amendment, however, those rulings were set aside by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, located in San Francisco. The ninth circuit heard the case in December 2008 and is expected to issue a ruling sometime this fall.

Since all this has happened, SI.com found out from four separate sources that Alex Rodriguez’ name was on the list. Subsequently, the NY Times cited lawyers close to legal proceedings when it reported that Sammy Sosa, Ortiz and Ramirez were also on the list.

Now that brings us back to today.

Finally, the MLBPA is taking the right steps to get this leaks plugged. The list was ordered sealed and all lawyers attached to this case are required to keep the information sealed, yet 4 names have been released and more would likely come in the future had the MLBPA elected not to do anything.

The MLBPA’s head guy, Donald Fehr issued this statement: “The leaking of information under a court seal is a crime. The active pursuit of information that may not lawfully be disclosed because it is under court seal is a crime. That its informants, according to the Times, are lawyers is both shocking and sad. That the Times is pursuing and publishing what it openly declares to be information which may not be legally disclosed is equally sad. We intend to take the appropriate legal steps to see that the court orders are enforced.”

Many players simply want this to end. Mark Teixeira, the Yankees first baseman who is also an executive member of the PA said, “Names are going to keep coming out, so just put it all out. Let everyone deal with it at the same time, because names coming out every two months isn’t good for the game. I don’t pass judgment on anybody. At the same time, as a guy that’s clean and has done things the right way his entire career, I don’t want any little kid looking at me and saying, ‘Did you do something? Were you on a list?'”

I’m just excited to see the player’s association finally threatening legal action against those responsible for the leaks. At this point, the steroid scandel is old news and for it to keep being rehashed every 2-3 months is just obnoxious. The list shoould be released all at once, much like the Mitchell Report and get it over and done with.

What a game last night. In a low scoring 3-2 loss, the Yankees came back from a 1-0 deficit, then a 2-1 deficit in the ninth, only to lose the game on a series of fluke plays in the bottom of the ninth. Andy Pettitte threw 5-hit, 1-run ball through six innings, leaving the game with the White Sox up 1-

Nick Swisher ties the game a 2-2 in the top of the ninth with this home run to left field (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

0.

Johnny Damon hit a 1-run double in the sixth to score Jose Molina to tie it up a 1-apiece. (Note: for some odd reason, the scorer called it a single, not a double for reasons beyond me.) After Chicago bounced back on top due to a horrible throw by Robinson Cano to first base, Nick Swisher tied it back up in the top of the ninth with a two-out, 1-run dinger to left field.

Phil Hughes. who had been dominating in the pen, allowed two singles in the top of the ninth. When he was pulled for left Phil Coke, another single was allowed, scoring one run and effectively ending the game. Hughes’ 25-inning scoreless streak was over – since he was responsible for allowing that runner to get on base, he was credited with the earned run and the loss.

Its evident now that the 2004 Red Sox Championship was achieved through the use of steroids. We knew Manny Ramirez was a steroid user- he just came off a 50 game suspension earlier this month for testing positive. Now, the New York Times in reporting that not only Ramirez, but also slugger David Ortiz tested positive for steroids in 2003.

The two men join Sammy Sosa and Alex Rodriguez as 4 of the around 104 Major League Players who tested positive in 2003 – the year MLB was attempting to understand how big the steroid issue was at the time. With 103 people testing positive, it meant that over 20% of Major League players were on ‘roids. Many more probably were, but never tested positive due to the timing of the test.

Ortiz is a big name bcause he has said multiple times that he never used PED’s and in February 2009, said that someone who tests positive should be banned for a year. When reached for comment, he said “I’m not talking about that anymore,” he said. “I have no comment.”

I’m sure this story is going to get bigger and bigger as the days go on.

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Joba Chamberlain pitched eight scoreless innings and Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano homered and drove in two runs apiece to lead the New York Yankees to a 6-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.

The AL East leaders won for the 11th time in 13 games since the All-Star break.

Chamberlain limited the Rays to three singles. Joba struck out five and walked two, with both of the free passes coming in the fifth inning.

Teixeira and Melky Cabrera hit solo homers in the eighth. Teixeira and Jorge Posada also had RBI singles for the Yankees,.

Cano hit his 16th homer of the year in the sixth for a 3-0 lead.

Chamberlain is 4-0 over his last seven starts and improved to 5-0 in nine starts on the road this season. He retired eight in a row before allowing a single with two outs in the third and gave up an infield hit to Carl Crawford on a comebacker that he slowed down but couldn’t field in the sixth.

Chamberlain departed with a 6-0 lead, but the Yankees still had to call on Mariano Rivera finish the game in a non-save situation after Brian Bruney gave up a triple to Crawford and Evan Longoria’s 21st homer with no outs in the ninth.

Rivera, who entered with one out after Carlos Pena doubled off Bruney, struck out Pat Burrell. After walking Gabe Gross, the New York closer fanned Michel Hernandez to end the game.

The Yankees built a 2-0 lead on Teixeira’s run-scoring single in the first and a single, double and Cano’s RBI grounder in the fourth, however they wasted several opportunities by stranding runners at third in the second and third innings.

Starting a nine-game, 10-day road trip that could set the tone for the remainder of the season, the Yanks continued their strong second-half start with an 11-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night.

The Yankees homered four times to improve to 10-1 since the All-Star break.

Starter AJ Burnett allowed two hits in seven innings and switch-hitter Nick Swisher homered from both sides of the plate.

Robinson Cano and Johnny Damon also went deep, while Derek Jeter had three hits and Alex Rodriguez contributed a two-run double on his 34th birthday.

Cano had an RBI triple in the second inning, then led off the sixth with his 15th homer. Swisher hit his 15th off the right-hander two pitches later and added his sixteenth with a solo shot in the ninth.

Damon finished New York’s 15-hit night with his 200th career homer, a three-run blast that made it 11-3

Beginning a stretch in which they’ll play 19 of 26 on the road, the Yankees showed no signs of a letdown following the club’s best homestand (9-1) since June 2004. They’ve won 23 of their last 29, climbing a season-best 23 games over .500.

The Rays scored twice off Jonathan Albaladejo in the eighth before the third New York pitcher, David Robertson, struck out Carlos Pena to escape a jam with two runners on.